


love is like ghosts

by stormss



Category: 9-1-1: Lone Star (TV 2020)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, Halloween, M/M, Mutual Pining, Paul's the Best
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-31
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-09 06:16:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27309790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stormss/pseuds/stormss
Summary: Don't get him wrong—Paul loves his friends. But they really can be idiots sometimes.*Or, a canon-divergent AU featuring pining idiots, Good Friend Paul, and a Halloween party.
Relationships: Carlos Reyes & Paul Strickland (9-1-1 Lone Star), Carlos Reyes/TK Strand, TK Strand & Paul Strickland
Comments: 17
Kudos: 112
Collections: 9-1-1 Lone Star ▶ Carlos Reyes / Tyler Kennedy "TK" Strand





	love is like ghosts

**Author's Note:**

> happy halloween!! 🎃 
> 
> i didn't know if i'd get this finished in time to post today, but i managed to free up some time and now we're here!! all of this derives from my love of paul, my desire to see more paul & tk and paul & carlos in the future, and of course, the spooky season! 
> 
> the title comes from _love like ghosts_ by lord huron. come say hi over on [tumblr!](https://reyesstrand.tumblr.com/)

It doesn't hit Paul that he's been Austin for so long until Halloween rolls around. 

Halfway through October, Cap rounds them all up, because even though none of them are scheduled to work on the holiday, there are still things to do around the firehouse to participate. Handing out candy to trick-or-treaters, for instance, and decorating the bay and passing out information on general safety to parents who bring their kids by. Paul's buzzing with anticipation—he's loved Halloween since he was a kid, loved putting his whole heart into a costume just to get to be someone else for a day. He and his siblings always went all out: their house was always the most intensely decorated every year, and they spent the whole month watching horror classics to build up to the big night. 

And it really hasn't changed now. 

He's thankfully surrounded by a team that generally thinks the same way; they're all apparently kids at heart, and can't wait for the end of the month. 

"So, our shift's up at nine-thirty," Paul says, pausing long enough to bring his beer to his lips. They'd gotten an email only a couple of hours ago, splitting the whole crew into teams to do various tasks at the firehouse on Halloween, and he's paired up with TK. He glances at TK, who's been worrying his straw between his teeth for the past five minutes, before continuing on. "We'll have time to get changed and head to the party for ten." 

There's no response. 

Paul takes another long sip, and then sighs to himself when TK doesn't even look in his general direction. 

"TK." 

"Hmm?" TK finally meets his eyes, and when Paul levels him with a look, TK scrubs a hand down his face. "Sorry, man. What were you saying?" 

Paul doesn't repeat himself—he just glances around the honky-tonk. The dance floor is bustling with people as per usual, the band up in full swing now, and he spots Marjan dancing with Nancy and Mateo with her head tilted back in laughter. He moves his gaze, and focuses in on TK's point of interest. He hums under his breath, and nudges TK's shoulder with his own. "I see, you're staring again." 

"I am _not._ "

Paul grins, draining the last few dregs of his beer before deadpanning: "Sure." 

" _Paul,_ " TK says, half-whine and half-groan, folding his arms on the tabletop before dropping his head down to rest on them. There's a beat, and then, muffled from his face being pressed into his sleeves: "Is it that obvious?" 

He frowns a little, and rests his hand on the kid's shoulder. "No, you're just best friends with someone who is better at noticing these things."

With a deep sigh, TK lifts his head and rests his gaze on Paul's face. Paul offers him a small smile. 

"Seriously though, TK," Paul drops his voice down to a whisper, because as much as he likes to tease, he knows how hard TK's fallen. "Just ask him out already." 

As if on cue, both of them look back over to where Carlos is playfully twirling Michelle around in what looks to be a routine perfected over years of friendship. Paul knows after _months_ of TK lamenting to him that Carlos had danced with him, once. TK still claims it was just someone being friendly, and welcoming him to a new town—which, _yeah,_ Paul still has to bite back laughter about that because the poor kid's clueless. 

The thing is: Paul knows how hard TK's had it. 

They've kind of bonded over it—becoming one another's shoulder to cry on, the person to rant to. He's heard about Alex and New York and the engagement ring that is now in some display case at a pawn shop in Brooklyn. He's seen TK slowly become _better_ over the past few months; he and Marjan and himself, they've stuck together over the time it took to get settled in Austin, and it's evident that they're all feeling more grounded. And so Paul understands the part of TK's brain that refuses to accept the risks that go along with taking things a step further. 

But here's the other thing: Paul's also pretty close with Carlos, who is just as stupidly enamoured, and just as clueless. 

Paul just wants his sanity back. 

TK gnaws on his straw some more, nervously tapping his fingers against the grain of the table, and for a _second,_ Paul thinks he might take the leap. But then he trains his eyes back on the table, and shakes his head. "I—no. I can't, Paul. What if—"

"—I get it," Paul murmurs, figuring that this isn't the time to push something. He'll figure it out on his own—even if Paul's gone gray by then. 

* * *

"I'm here to formally invite you to Marjan's party," Paul says, in lieu of a proper _hello_ when Carlos opens his door. 

Carlos smiles at him and opens his door wider, inviting him inside. Paul nods and beelines for the couch, following the smell of freshly popped popcorn to the source: a bowl of it on Carlos' coffee table. 

"Really, I'm invited?" Carlos asks, seemingly surprised. Paul nods, leaning back into the comfort of Carlos' couch. 

"Of course," Paul says, grabbing a handful of popcorn for himself. "The whole team will be there. Costumes are mandatory, obviously." 

"Obviously," Carlos grins, sitting down next to him. "Alright, sure. I'll come." 

"Good," Paul means it—the dude's gotta loosen up a bit. He's gotten close to Paul, but never seems available when they get together as a team. He trains his eyes on the TV, and five beats of silence pass until Carlos clears his throat. 

"Is TK going to be there?" 

Paul cocks an eyebrow at him. Carlos' face goes visibly warm, and he crosses his arms over his chest. 

"Don't give me that look," Carlos whispers, and Paul can't help but to nudge him lightly. 

"You're killing me here, you know that?" Paul asks, dramatically placing his hands over his chest. "You're going to send me to an early grave." 

Carlos rolls his eyes. "I was just wondering if he was going to be—" 

"—I doubt Marjan would let him skip out on it," Paul says, carefully observing the small movements of Carlos' face, his fingers tapping against his own forearm. "You know, you _could_ ask him to go with you." 

Carlos nearly subjects himself to whiplash, he turns to look at Paul so quickly. 

"Just a thought," Paul mutters, grabbing another handful of popcorn. He glances over and Carlos rubs a hand over his mouth, lost in his own thoughts, and Paul vaguely wonders if it's going to come down to locking the two of them in a closet for them to get it together. 

No. Well—

It'll be his last resort, at least. 

* * *

Paul cherishes the small things, as he strolls to the firehouse on Halloween. 

The crunch of the yellow leaves under his boots, the flickering lights of jack-o-lanterns on porches of the houses that line the street, the crisp coolness of the air. It's not too cold to him, yet—he grew up in Chicago winters, after all—but he loves getting to pull his long-sleeved shirts and sweaters out from the recesses of his closet, and choosing hot drinks over iced, and watching as the sun sets earlier and earlier with every passing day. 

He and TK are supposed to start passing out candy at seven, and so he strolls into the bay with a few minutes to spare, glancing around at the decorations. Paper cut-out ghosts are plastered to the walls and there are a few pumpkins littered around the space; one of the ladder trucks that's in need of a repair is decorated with cobwebs. There's a table set up in the middle of the room with an orange tablecloth and a bowl printed with spiders full of candy for the little ones. He finds TK there, leaning against the table, and they've only just gotten everything set up when the first few kids stroll in with their parents. 

Paul knows that TK's worrying about something; he realizes it isn't anything _serious_ when TK asks, for the tenth time, what he thinks Carlos is up to. TK loves kids, so thankfully it keeps him mostly distracted and it keeps Paul from just dragging his ass over to Carlos' place then and there. 

But it only takes an hour for things to shift. 

The promise of Carlos showing up to the party has made TK antsy, and he mutters, "this blows," with no prompting, once they hit a lull. 

Paul barely looks up from ripping open another one of the twenty or so bags of candy they'd bought in bulk last week, guiding the flow of mini chocolate bars into the bowl in front of him. 

TK sighs again; Paul grabs the first thing he sees—the familiar red packaging of a tiny Kit-Kat—and lobs it at TK's head. There's no real force behind it, but it makes the kid strolling up to them in a Black Panther costume laugh, and so Paul grins. 

" _Rude,_ " TK mutters, even though he's already ripped open the package and has popped the whole chocolate bar into his mouth. 

Paul hands some candy off to the little Black Panther, and waves forward a fairy princess. "Maybe you'll finally be able to make your move tonight." 

TK makes an indignant noise. 

"Come on, TK," Paul says, placing some candy in the little girl's bag before smiling wide at a little boy dressed in a firefighter costume. "Love it, little man!" 

The kid beams at him. 

When he's moved away from the table after both he and TK praised his costume, TK turns to him and asks: "Is it even worth it?"

They both stop talking when a few parents approach and offer some donations for the firehouse's weekend breakfast program, and TK smiles and thanks them. He stuffs the money into the little tin box they've kept to the side for this reason, before he turns back to Paul. 

"I mean, I clearly have no game anymore," TK says, rubbing the back of his neck. An automated witch figurine set on a timer suddenly leaps forward and garbles out a freaky laugh, and both he and TK jump at it, as they have over the past hour.

When they can breathe again, TK continues. "Besides, what if he just wants to be friends?"

Paul takes a deep, _deep,_ breath. "TK. I mean this in the nicest way possible: you're an idiot." 

TK opens his mouth as if to speak, but Paul sets a hand on his shoulder. 

"You like him," Paul says, slowly, "and he likes you. It's obvious." 

"You—he likes me?" TK asks, and it's so genuinely heartfelt that Paul's chest constricts. 

" _Yes,_ " Paul insists. "Literally everyone can see it." 

TK doesn't say anything, clearly wrapped up in his own head. 

Two little girls, dressed as zombified cheerleaders, approach the table. The conversation is shelved, then, and Paul wonders if he's finally gotten through to TK when he turns after they've cleaned up to find him gone. 

"Christ," Paul mutters under his breath, stopping long enough to text TK a quick pep talk before shifting over to his thread with Carlos, triple-checking he's still going to show up. When he gets an affirmative, Paul sighs, and heads to his car. 

* * *

Marjan's apartment is always a perfect balance of minimalist design and a wild array of artifacts and trinkets from her travels, and all of it is hidden when Paul strolls inside just after ten o'clock. 

The lights are dimmed, and there's every possible Halloween decoration under the sun strung up around the place. Marjan grins when she sees him enter, messing around with her speaks before she comes over to him with her proton pack tucked under her arm. 

"Who you gonna call?" He yells out to her, animatedly, because it's an _obligation_ to do so in his opinion. She just rolls her eyes but laughs anyway. Her jumpsuit is adorned with every little detail imaginable, and he glances around the room, looking for the other Ghostbusters. He spots Mateo and Nancy picking at the snack table in costumes that match Marjan's, and she must catch him looking, because she makes a face. 

"TK's our Stantz," Marjan says, shrugging. "Leave it to him to be fashionably late, right?" 

He snorts, and she steps back to properly take in his costume. 

"You _nailed_ this, by the way. Holy shit," Marjan adds, and Paul tilts his fedora at her in thanks. 

The Indiana Jones idea had come to him the moment Marjan announced her costume party, and he's pretty pleased with how it turned out. He looks around, and finds that most of their friends have gone all out, too—there are a few people just with intricate skulls painted on their faces or sporting witch hats, but he spots Grace and Judd pulling off a pretty amazing Gomez and Morticia, and he makes his way over to them to get a drink and chat. 

A few moments later, Paul turns his head when he feels a hand at his elbow—it's Carlos, sporting a cowboy hat and a tight flannel shirt. Paul cocks a brow at him. 

"It's a last-minute effort, don't judge," Carlos says, and Paul shrugs, handing him over a cup of punch. Carlos looks relieved, and takes it, muttering his thanks as he takes a long sip. He glances around, and then asks: "Have you seen TK?" 

Paul shakes his head. "He should be on his way." 

"Good," Carlos says, nodding along to his words, before finishing the glass of punch. "I'm going to tell him." 

Paul meets Grace's eyes, and she makes a face that would probably translate to _fucking finally._ He grins, and rests a hand on Carlos' shoulder, offering wordless support to his friend. Sometime later, as the music grows louder and more people fill the room, Paul finally catches sight of TK—in his own Ghostbusters jumpsuit, though he's chosen to unzip it a little due to the heat of the crowded space. He offers to take the big group photo of the four of them, and when they're done posing, Paul catches TK by the arm and gently turns him so he can come face-to-face with Carlos. 

"You got this, kid," Paul whispers to him, before he not-so-gently shoves the two of them together. When he leaves, they're talking in the corner of the room, and Paul makes his way back over to Grace, Judd, and Marjan. They easily drift into conversation—about movies, about their real-life horror stories at work, about who objectively has the best costume. 

It seems like hours go by, but soon enough, Marjan's letting out a quiet exclamation, and gestures over his shoulder. He glances over, and finds that TK and Carlos have, finally, gotten their shit together. Don't get him wrong—Paul loves his friends. But they really can be idiots sometimes, and they have been for the longest while. And now, he sees them smiling at each other as they break apart from a kiss, before going in for more, and more, and _yup,_ that's Paul's cue to look away. 

"It's about time," Judd mutters, gruffly, and Paul huffs a laugh. 

"I'll drink to that," he says, and everyone around him clinks their glasses together. 

* * *

Paul's soaking up his little moment of solace, book in his lap and his free hand scratching behind Buttercup's ears, when TK abruptly comes into the room and drops down onto the couch next to him. 

"You know what this means, right?" 

Paul glances up from his book, looking at TK expectantly. There's a devilish grin on his face, and Paul regrets it immediately. 

"What are we talking about?" Paul remembers idly chatting with him a little while ago, but he'd assumed the conversation was over when Marjan started calling him lover-boy and pulled him away to make lunch. Paul closes his book around his thumb. 

"You helped us get together," TK starts, trailing off a little before continuing in an attempt to let Paul come to the right conclusion. 

Which he does. He hears it, loud and clear. 

"No," Paul tries, but TK laughs and elbows him in the shoulder. 

"You're coming out with us tonight," TK says, determination in his eyes. "I'm getting you a girlfriend if it's the last thing I do, Paul." 

"Terrible," Paul mutters, though he's smiling. "You're terrible." 

"Love you too!" TK grins, dropping down to kiss Buttercup's head before he wanders off toward the bunks. 

Paul feels a weight lifted off his shoulders when he looks at TK now—his smiles reach his eyes, he's open with talking to him about the shit going on in his life, and it's such a difference from when he'd first met him and could read the hesitation in every microscopic feature in his face. His heart soars a little, thinking of the way Carlos couldn't stop smiling when they'd gone for drinks a couple of nights ago, and as he turns back to his book, he figures a night out with his best friends wouldn't be a bad way to end off the week. No, not a bad way at all. 

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading! comments/kudos are greatly appreciated <3


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